UCSC pioneers virtual UC classroom

Brent Haddad, director of UC Santa Cruz's WaterLab, conducts his Introduction to Fresh Water online class to students throughout the University of California system Friday. (Dan Coyro -- Santa Cruz Sentinel)

SANTA CRUZ &GT;&GT; In a virtual UC Santa Cruz classroom, students interact with faculty and gain UC credit, without having to leave their dorm rooms.

Each week, the 30 students in Brent Haddad's "Introduction to Fresh Water" watch live lecture videos and type questions into a chatroom at the bottom of the screen.

Originally offered in a traditional format, the class has now been offered three times online, the result of four years of work, said Haddad, associate dean of engineering for technology management. The class was UCSC's first online course in Fall 2012.

"Online education will never substitute for traditional learning but it could augment, supplement and create new opportunities," said Haddad. "And I'd say the essential element remains the interaction between the teacher and the student."

This year, UCSC also offered an online calculus course with about 200 students, and two free massive open online courses (MOOCs), available on www.coursera.org, with thousands.

Most classes have some online component, said Herbie Lee, UCSC's vice provost for academic affairs. One type is a "flipped class," in which students watch taped lectures online and attend class for discussion, he said.

Online courses don't cut costs for campus, said Lee, since they require professors to invest time into filming, editing and production.

"If you want to do a good job and take advantage of the online format, it requires more investment and it's expensive," Lee said.

Haddad said one advantage, said is the ability to lecture remotely and include guests who would not otherwise be available.

A con, he said, is decreased interaction between students.

When the class meets this summer and fall, Haddad said he plans to include a weekend Pajaro Valley field trip, for students to gain lab experience and meet classmates.

This year, the class was among the first to be offered UC system-wide, and includes five students from other campuses.

Meng Yu Qi, a UCLA senior, said she took the class because she was interested in learning about water issues outside of Los Angeles. The economics major said she appreciates the feedback she gets from Haddad, facilitated by the online format. In most classes, papers are graded by graduate students, who comment only once, she said.

"But this one I can talk to him and he'll reply to me again and again so he'll continue the conversation," Qi said.

UCSC freshman Tom Hamouzas said when he attends the class, he's either at the library or lounging on his balcony.

"It feels more like someone sharing information with you rather than a class you have to go to," said Hamouzas, who said Haddad has inspired him to apply for a water research internship at NASA.